When you know, you know

ANNIE VALA'S DIARY

 Hiiiii, it's Annie again. And today I'm here with the biggest news I've ever shared with you all. My case.

 With the love of my life, a dream named Ian. My hand still trembles a little when I write it.

Life is funny. Maybe one day I'll tell you things from much further back, so you understand my whole story with love and why this means so much. But what I can tell you today is this: Ian arrived when I least expected it and needed him most.

 A few months before I met him, my brothers used to tell me that I was too rebellious, free, fleeting. That with my desire to conquer the world, to go, do and undo, it would be difficult for a Tapatío to keep up with me. That I couldn't sit still. At first I ignored them. But when something is repeated to you enough times, fear certainly creeps in. And it did.

 What I didn't know was that, while fear was speaking to me, he was already there, waiting for me.

That saying, "when you know, you know," turned out to be true. And the way it all happened... I still can't believe it.

 It started with a message. My friend Cardiel —who, by the way, is the photographer for Vala Blanca— wrote to me with some photos of a conversation: the people in charge of social media, photos, video, and marketing at Hacienda Sepúlveda, in Lagos de Moreno, were looking for a couple to appear in some images. Of course I believed him. How could I not? Ian and Cardiel barely know each other. It never would have occurred to me that it was all a plan between the two of them.

 I asked Ian if he would like to be in those photos. He said, "I don't know." And I, inwardly, was begging him to say yes, because I really wanted to do Cardiel a favor. In the end, he agreed.

But on the actual day, something strange happened. Ian feigned illness. He kept delaying and delaying, and we were running late. I didn't understand what was wrong with him; it seemed intentional, and I was already angry. What I didn't know was that while he was buying time, Cardiel was on the highway fixing a flat tire. Everything was hanging by a thread, and I was completely oblivious.

We finally left. Two and a half hours drive to the hacienda.

At some point, my nerves got the best of me. "Of course it's going to be here," I thought. And I blurted out to Ian: hey, my nails aren't done, you're not going to propose to me here, are you? Although, on the other hand, my heart was saying something else: we're dressed to match, there's a professional photographer, my hair is done... why not? But the nails. The important nails.

He replied no, it wasn't going to be that moment, but soon. I stared at him with a "are you sure?" face. And I said: "we'll see". And I started searching through his pants pockets. I didn't feel anything. "Okay, not here," I thought, and I got a little sad. But I took a breath and understood that it would be when it was meant to be.

Cardiel had us all over the hacienda, photo after photo, until the rain started to approach. Before it fell, they asked us for a few last ones by the lake.

 There, near the water, Ian began to tell me he loved me. Many times. And Cardiel, from the other side, shouted for us to turn to the camera. So I, between photos, replied: "Me too, my love... but look forward." Like, five times. Until I finally managed to finish the sentence:

"I love you so, so much... that I want to marry you."

And the dream came true. He was engaged.

And the best part of it all —because you already know me— is that, of course, I was wearing my Vala Blanca shoes. White, pointed, with a thick, comfortable heel, the kind that supports you without asking for anything in return. That day confirmed a theory I have tattooed on me: shoes are life's most faithful companions. They are there on ordinary days and also on those that change everything.

Now, every time I see them, I can't help but smile. Because they're not just white shoes. They're the ones that walked with me to one of the happiest moments of my life.

And if this taught me anything, it's that love—and life—almost never arrive when you plan for them, or with perfect nails. They arrive when they're meant to. You just have to be willing to walk towards them.

Love, Annie Vala